Alternative Uses for White Vinegar

Pretty much everyone know that white vinegar has long been used in cooking and canning recipes, but white vinegar has many other uses around the house while replacing many toxic chemicals. Here are just a few ideas:

Pour 1 Cup vinegar and 1 Cup baking soda into your toilet, let sit for at least 30 minutes. Swish with toilet brush and flush. Not only will this clean the toilet, but refreshes it, as well!

When washing your car, use a rag soaked in vinegar to clean your windshield washer blades. The vinegar will cut right through the road grime and any other built up on the blades making them much more effective when wiping your windows!

Quickly and easily clean and deodorize your kitchen cutting board by wiping it down with white vinegar. It will remove odors and bacteria at the same time!

If you notice that a bathroom or kitchen drain is draining slowly, before reaching for that bottle of chemical drain opener, try this instead: pour ½ Cup baking soda down the drain follow immediately by 1 Cup white vinegar. After a couple of minutes, pour at least 4 Cups of boiling water down the drain. Depending on the build-up or clog, this process may need to be repeated for maximum benefit.

Remove water ring marks left by wet glasses on wood furniture by mixing equal parts white vinegar with olive oil. Apply the mixture to the mark with a soft cloth while moving with the wood grain. Use another clean, soft cloth to bring up the shine.

Do you have soot build up on the front of your fireplace? You can easily remove that by wiping down the brick or stone with a damp cloth dipped in a mixture of 1 Cup white vinegar and with 1 gallon (3.7 liters) of warm water. This method also works well to clean and brighten brick or stone floors and patios.

Have you ever had a candle drip or melt onto a piece of wood furniture? Here is what you do: To remove the melted wax, soften it by using a blow-dryer on its hottest setting. Blot up as much as you can with paper towels. Remove whatever is still left by rubbing with a cloth soaked in a solution made of equal parts white vinegar and water. Wipe clean with a soft, absorbent cloth.

To clean chrome and stainless steel fixtures around your home, apply a light misting of undiluted white vinegar from a recycled spray bottle. Buff with a soft cloth to bring out the brightness.

Clean and freshen your microwave by placing a small glass bowl or measuring cup filled with ¼ Cup of white vinegar mixed with 1 Cup of water inside. Microwave the mixture for five minutes on the highest setting. Once the bowl cools, dip a cloth or sponge into the liquid and use it to wipe away stains and splatters on the interior.

I do hope that you found these tips helpful and practical! Do you have a favorite alternative uses for white vinegar? If so, I would love to hear about them. Please feel free to let me know in the comments below!

Someone else cleans for us at home so I don’t really have an alternative use for vinegar. And I’ve read a similar post like this, but I only learned now that vinegar can also be used to clean the insides of a microwave. This is a really informative post. Thanks for sharing 🙂

You are very fortunate to have someone clean for you. Even though you do not do the cleaning of your home yourself, you could always ask the person who does the cleaning to use some of these ideas to be more environmentally friendly and to reduce the amount of toxic chemicals used in your home. Thank you for reading and taking the time to comment. 🙂

Wow! I never knew about this until now. Thanks a lot for sharing. This is very helpful. Vinegar are also very easy to get because they’re kitchen essentials so you can use it anytime. My dad also use white vinegar with water to wash vegetables. 🙂

I’ll be honest, I’m not that good at household work. I don’t clean the house that much. But I am amaze to discover life hacks like this. Because one day I believe I’ll be needing this kind of tips when the time comes I’ll have my own family. I’m willing to learn 🙂

Karla – If the vinegar doesn’t help with the hard water stains in the toilet, another trick you can try is to purchase some denture tablets – the kind that people use to soak their dentures clean overnight. Buy the cheapest ones you can find. I can usually find them at the Dollar Store. Pop a couple of tablets into the toilet and let it sit overnight or for at least a few hours. Swish with a toilet brush and flush. I have had this help quite a bit with the hard water rings that have built up on the sides.

I’ve heard about the benefit of baking soda and vinegar, but never thought vinegar could clean so many things in the house. One thing I learn from someone that the mixture of luke warmwater and vinegar is a perfect cleaniing product for window pane.

Thanks for all the great tips! I love using natural products where possible so I will definitely try them especially the one for the drain (perfect timing as the drain in my shower is clogged! ) and the one to clean the windshield and blade. If everyone pitches in and incorporate one natural cleaning product in their life, the earth will be a better place. Thanks for sharing! : )

Vinegar is one of the most important ingredients for cooking most of Filipino food. I’m a fan of vinegar. I’m glad to know that there are many alternative ways it can help us out. Would definitely try the one for the rinse. Thanks for sharing 🙂

I love a bit of creativity and DIY when it comes to household cleaning products, who knew there were so many useful ways to use vinegar! Will definitely be putting some of these methods into practise, thank you for the very useful advice 🙂

My personal blog about This and That such as Practical and Helpful Tips useful in every day life, Cooking and Baking, Consumer Product Reviews, Historical Tidbits, and my personal Miscellaneous Musings about just about anything!! Every day I try my best to live by these wise and simple words: “Do the right thing, be nice, and don’t be a jerk”. I hope that I am successful at carrying out this simplistic, yet not-always-easy-to-accomplish task!